Chusetts



PARROTT & BOARDMAN.

Ore Amalgamator. i No. 65.593. Patented June 1|, 1867.

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.geiten gratta gatrnt @Hira- WILLIAM r. rARROTr AND JOHN J. BORDMAN, OF BOSTON, MASSA- i cnusn'rrs.

Lam-s 139mm No. 65,593, 'dated Jima 11, ist?.

IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR AMALGAMATING AND COLLECTING GOLD AND SILVER PROM GRES.

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'IO ALL PERSONS TO WHOMTHESE PRESENTS SHALL COME:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM P. PARROTT, and JOHN J. BORDA'IAN, of Boston, in the county of Sui'olk, and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Machine for Extracting Metal from its Ore by means of mercury; and we do hereby declare the samev to be fully described in the following specification and represented in the accompanying drawings, of which- Y Figure I is a top view o'f the machine, without its cover and the chute thereof.

Figure 2, an elevation of one side of such machine.

Figure 3 is an elevation of the other side of the machine` Figure 4 is an end view of it.

Figure 5 is a. transverse section and Figure 6 a longitudinal section of the machine.

The plane of'section of iig. 5 is through and in line of the axis of one of the amalgamating rollers (viz, that marked C) of the machine.

Figure 'T is a top view of the cover and its chute or induction spout.

Figure 8 is a top view of the duplex mercury-trough, and the scrapers at its ends.

In our machine we eifect the amalganiation of the metal by Vmeans of one or more cylinders or rollers, one or more troughs of mercury, and one or more scrapers, or their' equivalents, the purpose of the scraper or scrapers being`to separate the amalgam from the curved surface or surfaces of the roller or rollers after its formation and accumulation thereon. In constructing the operative surface of cach of such rollers we make it of brass, o'rI some other metal or material for which mercury has au ainity, or to which it will readily adhere, so that while tire-roller or rollers-may be revolving in the trough or against a surface having mercury on it,

such mercury will adhere to and be taken up by the roller or rollers and be carried in contact with a mass of ore in a powdered state and mixed with water so as to be what is generally termed ore pulp.

lVeusually combine with the said roller or rollers and trough or troughs a hopper and chute for supplying n n v o the ore pulp to the'roller or rollers; and furthermore, we comblne wlth the trough or troughs means of heating the Some, and also what is termed a riiile, viz, an inclined plane provided with a series of parallel ledges arranged on its upper surface.

Each or either of the cylinderspr rollers we construct 'in the manner'in which each of those of our orecrushing machine, recently patented by us, is made, that is to say, we compose it ot' aseries of peripheral segments or parts, a body, and devices or mechanism for fastening such peripheral segments to the body, the same being to enable such parts or segments to be renewed, o1' when worn to be removed from the body and others substituted for them.

Such a method of constructing each of tho rollers we have represented in the aforementioned drawings,

but as it is fully, described in the specification of our said patent, which is dated January 8,1867, and numbered' 61,019, of United States Patents, and constitutes the subject of one of the claims of the specification thereof, it will be unnecessaryfor us to enter into any further description of it. We do not, however, @online our invention to this particular construction of roller, as we intend to employ plain cylinders, made as is shown at B in tig. of tnedrawings, so long as these cylinders are made of proper materials and in a suitable manner for the purpose of operating with the mercury in the method as herein explained.

In the drawings, A denotes the frame of the machine. B and C are two cylinders or rollers, whose journals or shafts c d are supported in suitable boxes a a, b b. The boxes b b of the shaft d of the roller C are movable, orare to he supported so as to be capable of sliding toward and away from the boxes a o, and they are provided with springs e e, by which they are pressed 4toward the said boxes a a,`in order that the roller C may touch and'properly adjust itself relatively to the roller B while the two may bc in operation. Underneath enen of these rollers is a trough to hold mercury, the same being placed so-as to enable the roller to revolve within the mercury when it is in the trough. I

The trough, shown at D, may extend up between thetwo rollers in manner as represented in tig. 6. rllhe bottom of such trough may constitute the top of a heating-box or chamber, E, arranged underneath the trough anddestined to receive steam or heated air-for the purpose of heating the mercury and the rollers in order to prevent the pulp or the water from freezing upon the rollers while the surrounding atmosphere may be at or below a freezing temperature, This heating of' the mercury and the rollers also serves to facilitate their 'operations and the amalgamation of the meta-l of the ore.

Between and above thc rollers B C is a hopper, E, provided with an induction spout or chute, G, the latter being secured to the topof a cap or cover, H, whichextends over and about the rollers in manner as represented in the drawings.

I `urthermore, the shafts c al of the two rollers B C have a train of spur-gears, I K, applied to them, the same being in order that one roller may be -revolved in a direction the reverse of the other. To the shaft of each roller B C we aiiiX a groovedcam, L, the groove of whose periphery is so formed as to cause theY roller, while in revolution, to have a reciprocating endwisc movement. An arm, M, extends from the frameA into such grooves of the cam, such arm, with the com, serving to produce the endwise movement of the roller while such roller and the cam may be in revolution.

Two serapers, N N, arranged against opposite ends of the trough B, and with their edges against the peripheries of the two rollers B C, operate to remove the amalgam from the rollers and cause it to fall .upon a.

rime, O, arranged within the frame A and underneath-the trough. Y The riiiie, at its lower end, discharges into a spout or receiver, P. For supplying'the riiiie with Water we employ a pipe or conduit, fr, arranged atits upper end as shown in iig. 6; and for discharging from the riie and the receiver P the waste ore or tailings we make an opening, y, in the end of the frame. The amalgam will gather in the receiver P, the tailings being carried oit` through the said opening y.

In order to facilitate the amalgamation of the metal we also employ, in connection with each of the main rollers B C, an auxiliary or smaller roller, R, which we arrange witbrespect to the main roller in manner as represented in figs. l and 6. A trough for holding mercury may be also applied to cach of the said auxiliary rollers.

The principle of our machine is to be foundin the employment of one'roller or cylinder, a trough of' mercury, and a scraper, or means of removing the amalgam from the surface of the cylinder. VvAlthough we have represented this, we have also shown two cylinders B C or rollers, arranged as described, as when they are so employed -they not only perform the functions of two rollers so far as taking up the mercury from the trough is concerned, but they operate to evenly spread the mercury upon their surfaces and regulate the thickness of the films of it thereon. I

Another mode in which we have 'contemplated the construction of our machine with the two cylinders B C is to employ two separate mercurial troughs, one to each cylinder, with a space between them. The cylinders are to revolve toward each or their upper surfaces. The Scrapers in this case would be arranged in the space between the troughs, and there should be a sufficient space between them for the escape of the amalgam and tailings, which, in this case, would fall between the rollers. 4

In the operation of this machine the ore in the state of pulp is to be fed into the hopperF by' means of the spout Gr, and so as to be delivered on and between the rollers yB C while they may be in revolution in the mercury contained in the trough or troughs D.

The mercury having an aiinity for the surfaces of the rollers will be taken up in a thin lm ou each of them, and i-n this state will be run in contact with the particles of the ore. The rollers revolving closely together the ore will not pass down between them, but will be agitated by them and the water flowing into the hopper. i The lms of mercury will extract the metal from the ore and-carry it over in a state of amalgam to the scrapers, which will remove the amalgam from the rollers, it being discharged upon the r'iiiie and into the trough at the bottom thereof.

The lateral or endwise motions of the rollers not only prevent their surfaces from becominguvorn uu'evenly, butmatcifially assist or facilitate the amalgamation of the metal with the mercury. i

-We claim as our invention a combination consisting not only of one or more rollers and one or more troughs of mercury or for holding mercury, but of one or more Scrapers (or their equivalents) for removing the amalgam' from the surface or surfaces of such roller or rollers, the whole being substantially as describedr' We also claim the arrangement of two rollers and their mercury-trough so that the said rollers while in revolution may take up the mercury from the trough, and by their combined action press it against or cause it to `adhere to and be spread evenly on their surfaces.

We also claim the construction of the mercury-trough so as to extend up between the two rollers' and guide the mercury up to their bite While they are in revolution, the samebeing as exhibited in iig. 6.

We also claim the combination of the heating-chamber E, or a means of heating the trough of mercury, or the same and its roller or rollers, with the said trough, the roller or rollers, and the scraper or Scrapers thereof, as specified.

We also claim the arrangement of the auxiliary rollers R R with the main rollers C, their Scrapers, andv mercury-trough, as explained.

We also claim the combination, as welLasthearrangementfof.the rilil() with the trough D, one or more rollers B C, and one or more scrapersN N. v

We also claim the combination `of mechanism for-impartingwtc. either V6r botho'f the rollers"B C VendWise movements, under circumstances as rset forth,withsucli/rollers, the mercury-trough, and the Scrapers, or their equivalents, the whole being substantially'as specified. l

WM. P. PARROTL JNO. J. BoRDMAN.

Witnesses:

R. H. EDDY, F. P. HALE, Jr. 

